REGION / Open Space Board to Appoint New Member

Published 4:00 am, Saturday, October 14, 2000

The Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District will appoint someone to fill the vacancy on the board of directors created by the death of longtime environmental activist Betsy Crowder, who was killed in a Portola Valley auto accident on Sept. 29.

Crowder's term as Ward 6 director expires in November 2002. Although the district could have held a special election in March 2001, the board decided this week against spending up to $390,000 in election expenses and leaving the ward -- Portola Valley, Woodside, Atherton, Menlo Park and unincorporated San Mateo County land along Skyline Boulevard -- unrepresented for five months.

The district, which includes seven geographic wards, maintains 46,000 acres of open space preserves from San Carlos to Los Gatos with the help of an annual property tax. It holds public meetings on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month at 7:30 p.m. in Los Altos.

Applicants for the open seat on the board must live in Ward 6 and submit applications by Nov. 8. A first round of interviews is scheduled for Nov. 20, with final interviews and the appointment set for Nov. 27.